Authentication of a Physical Credential

ABSTRACT

Aspects described herein may provide detection of a physical characteristic of a credential, thereby allowing for authentication of the credential. According to some aspects, these and other benefits may be achieved by detecting the physical characteristic with the credential. An image of a credential may be received. An optical characteristic of a secure feature of the credential may be determined. An expected optical characteristic of the secure feature may be determined based on known properties of the secure feature. A determination as to whether the credential is authentic may be based on a comparison of the determined optical characteristic of the secure feature to the expected optical characteristic of the secure feature.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/892,568, filed Jun. 4, 2020, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 16/656,748, filed Oct. 18, 2019, each of which arehereby incorporate by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF USE

Aspects of the disclosure relate generally to authentication of aphysical credential. More specifically, aspects of the disclosure mayprovide improved detection of a physical characteristic of a physicalcredential to enhance a determination of authenticity of the physicalcredential.

BACKGROUND

Physical credentials, such as identification documents or cards, oftenrequire authentication. To perform authentication, many conventionaltechniques verify a feature included on the physical credential such asa holographic feature. Many of these conventional authenticationtechniques rely on a single image of the physical credential. Using onlya single image of the physical credential renders these conventionaltechniques susceptible to fraud. For example, a fraudulent documentcontaining a high-quality photocopy of a holographic feature may bedetermined to be authentic by these conventional techniques when asingle image of the holographic feature is used for verification. As aresult, these authentication techniques may be easily deceived, leadingto unreliable detection of inauthentic physical credentials.

Aspects described herein may address these and other problems, andgenerally improve the reliability of authenticating a physicalcredential by detecting physical properties of the physical credentialin a more accurate and reliable manner.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary of various aspects describedherein. This summary is not an extensive overview, and is not intendedto identify key or critical elements or to delineate the scope of theclaims. The following summary merely presents some concepts in asimplified form as an introductory prelude to the more detaileddescription provided below.

Aspects described herein may provide detection of a physicalcharacteristic of a physical credential, thereby allowing forauthentication of the physical credential. According to some aspects,these and other benefits may be achieved by detecting the physicalcharacteristic based on two or more orientations of the physicalcredential. More particularly, some aspects described herein may providea computer-implemented method for determining an authenticity of aphysical credential. The method may include receiving a first image of acredential in a first orientation and receiving a second image of thecredential in a second, different orientation. A type of the credentialmay be determined based on at least one of the first image and thesecond image. A secure feature of the credential may be determined basedon the determined type of the credential. An optical characteristic ofthe secure feature may be determined based on light reflected from thesecure feature in both the first image and the second image. An expectedoptical characteristic of the secure feature may be determined based onknown properties of the secure feature, the first orientation, and thesecond orientation. The credential may be determined to be authenticwhen the determined optical characteristic of the secure feature matchesthe expected optical characteristic of the secure feature. Thecredential may be determined to be inauthentic when the determinedoptical characteristic of the secure feature fails to match the expectedoptical characteristic of the secure feature.

Some aspects described herein may provide a system for determining anauthenticity of a physical credential. The system may include a databaseconfigured to store known physical characteristics of a secure featureof a credential. The system may include one or more processors. Thesystem may include memory storing instructions that, when executed bythe one or more processors, cause the system to perform the followingoperations: receive a video sequence of the credential in two or moreorientations; determine a type of the credential based on the videosequence; determine the secure feature of the credential based on thedetermined type of the credential; determine a value indicating aphysical characteristic of the secure feature based on light reflectedfrom the secure feature in the video sequence; determine an expectedvalue indicating the physical characteristic of the secure feature basedon the known physical characteristics of the secure feature, a lightlevel of an environment of the credential, and the two or moreorientations; compare the determined value and the determined expectedvalue; and determine the credential is authentic when the determinedvalue is within a predetermined range of the determined expected valueand/or determine the credential is inauthentic when the determined valueis outside of the predetermined range of the determined expected value.

Corresponding apparatus, systems, and computer-readable media are alsowithin the scope of the disclosure.

These features, along with many others, are discussed in greater detailbelow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure is illustrated by way of example and not limitedin the accompanying figures in which like reference numerals indicatesimilar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 depicts an example of a computing device that may be used inimplementing one or more aspects of the disclosure in accordance withone or more illustrative aspects discussed herein;

FIG. 2A depicts a physical credential in a first orientation fordetermining a physical characteristic of the physical credentialaccording to one or more aspects of the disclosure;

FIG. 2B depicts the physical credential in a second orientation fordetermining the physical characteristic of the physical credentialaccording to one or more aspects of the disclosure; and

FIG. 3 depicts a flow chart for a method of determining an authenticityof a physical credential based on determining a physical characteristicof the physical credential according to one or more aspects of thedisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description of the various embodiments, reference ismade to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and inwhich is shown by way of illustration various embodiments in whichaspects of the disclosure may be practiced. It is to be understood thatother embodiments may be utilized and structural and functionalmodifications may be made without departing from the scope of thepresent disclosure. Aspects of the disclosure are capable of otherembodiments and of being practiced or being carried out in various ways.Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology usedherein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded aslimiting. Rather, the phrases and terms used herein are to be giventheir broadest interpretation and meaning. The use of “including” and“comprising” and variations thereof is meant to encompass the itemslisted thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional itemsand equivalents thereof.

By way of introduction, aspects discussed herein may relate to methodsand techniques for verifying an authenticity of a physical credential.Two or more images of the physical credential may be received. Lightreflected from the physical credential may vary between the two or moreimages of the physical credential. The light reflected from the physicalcredential in the two or more images enables a physical characteristicof the physical credential to be determined such as an opticalcharacteristic of a secure feature of the physical credential. Thedetermined physical characteristic of the physical credential iscompared to an expected physical characteristic of the physicalcredential based on known physical properties of the physicalcredential. The physical credential is determined to be authentic if thedetermined physical characteristic matches the expected physicalcharacteristic. As discussed further herein, determining a physicalcharacteristic of the physical credential using two or more images ofthe physical credential such that light reflects from the physicalcredential differently in each of the two or more images improvesdetection of inauthentic physical credentials.

Before discussing these concepts in greater detail, however, severalexamples of a computing device that may be used in implementing and/orotherwise providing various aspects of the disclosure will first bediscussed with respect to FIG. 1.

FIG. 1 illustrates one example of a computing device 101 that may beused to implement one or more illustrative aspects discussed herein. Forexample, computing device 101 may, in some embodiments, implement one ormore aspects of the disclosure by reading and/or executing instructionsand performing one or more actions based on the instructions. In someembodiments, computing device 101 may represent, be incorporated in,and/or include various devices such as a desktop computer, a computerserver, a mobile device (e.g., a laptop computer, a tablet computer, asmart phone, any other types of mobile computing devices, and the like),and/or any other type of data processing device.

Computing device 101 may, in some embodiments, operate in a standaloneenvironment. In others, computing device 101 may operate in a networkedenvironment. As shown in FIG. 1, various network nodes 101, 105, 107,and 109 may be interconnected via a network 103, such as the Internet.Other networks may also or alternatively be used, including privateintranets, corporate networks, local area networks (LANs), wirelessnetworks, personal networks (PAN), and the like. Network 103 is forillustration purposes and may be replaced with fewer or additionalcomputer networks. A LAN may have one or more of any known LANtopologies and may use one or more of a variety of different protocols,such as Ethernet. Devices 101, 105, 107, 109 and other devices (notshown) may be connected to one or more of the networks via twisted pairwires, coaxial cable, fiber optics, radio waves, or other communicationmedia.

As seen in FIG. 1, computing device 101 may include a processor 111, RAM113, ROM 115, network interface 117, input/output interfaces 119 (e.g.,keyboard, mouse, display, printer, etc.), and memory 121. Processor 111may include one or more computer processing units (CPUs), graphicalprocessing units (GPUs), and/or other processing units such as aprocessor adapted to perform computations associated with machinelearning. I/O 119 may include a variety of interface units and drivesfor reading, writing, displaying, and/or printing data or files. I/O 119may be coupled with a display such as display 120. Memory 121 may storesoftware for configuring computing device 101 into a special purposecomputing device in order to perform one or more of the variousfunctions discussed herein. Memory 121 may store operating systemsoftware 123 for controlling overall operation of computing device 101,control logic 125 for instructing computing device 101 to performaspects discussed herein, software 127 (e.g., machine learningsoftware), data 129 (e.g., training set), and other applications 131.Control logic 125 may be incorporated in and may be a part of software127. In other embodiments, computing device 101 may include two or moreof any and/or all of these components (e.g., two or more processors, twoor more memories, etc.) and/or other components and/or subsystems notillustrated here.

Devices 105, 107, 109 may have similar or different architecture asdescribed with respect to computing device 101. Those of skill in theart will appreciate that the functionality of computing device 101 (ordevice 105, 107, 109) as described herein may be spread across multipledata processing devices, for example, to distribute processing loadacross multiple computers, to segregate transactions based on geographiclocation, user access level, quality of service (QoS), etc. For example,devices 101, 105, 107, 109, and others may operate in concert to provideparallel computing features in support of the operation of control logic125 and/or software 127.

One or more aspects discussed herein may be embodied in computer-usableor readable data and/or computer-executable instructions, such as in oneor more program modules, executed by one or more computers or otherdevices as described herein. Generally, program modules includeroutines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. thatperform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data typeswhen executed by a processor in a computer or other device. The modulesmay be written in a source code programming language that issubsequently compiled for execution, or may be written in a scriptinglanguage such as (but not limited to) HTML or XML. The computerexecutable instructions may be stored on a computer readable medium suchas a hard disk, optical disk, removable storage media, solid statememory, RAM, etc. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, thefunctionality of the program modules may be combined or distributed asdesired in various embodiments. In addition, the functionality may beembodied in whole or in part in firmware or hardware equivalents such asintegrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and thelike. Particular data structures may be used to more effectivelyimplement one or more aspects discussed herein, and such data structuresare contemplated within the scope of computer executable instructionsand computer-usable data described herein. Various aspects discussedherein may be embodied as a method, a computing device, a dataprocessing system, or a computer program product.

Having discussed several examples of computing devices which may be usedto implement some aspects as discussed further below, discussion willnow turn to an example arrangement for determining a physicalcharacteristic of a physical credential to authenticate the physicalcredential.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate an example arrangement for determining anauthenticity of a physical credential 202 in accordance with one or moreaspects described herein. FIG. 2A illustrates the physical credential202 in a first orientation 280. FIG. 2B illustrates the physicalcredential 202 in a second orientation 282 (e.g., relative to the firstorientation 280 of the physical credential 202). An orientation of thephysical credential 202 may be relative to a sensor 204 and/or a lightsource 206 as discussed further herein. As an example, the orientationof the physical credential 202 may be relative to light reflected off ofor from the physical credential 202 (or any portion thereof) such thatlight reflects off the physical credential 202 in a first manner in thefirst orientation 280 and reflects off of the physical credential 202 ina second manner in the second orientation 282.

In various embodiments, the physical credential 202 may be rotated inany manner (e.g., along any axis) in three-dimensional (3D) space. Invarious embodiments, the physical credential 202 may define a firstplane when in the first orientation 280 and may define a second,different plane when in the second orientation 282. Alternatively, thephysical credential 202 may be held stationary in both the first andsecond orientations 280 and 282 and one or more of the light source 206and the sensor 204 may be moved relative to the physical credential 202such that light incident on and/or reflected from the physicalcredential may vary between the first and second orientations 280 and282.

The physical credential 202 may be any type of physical object or itemincluding, for example, an identification (ID) card (e.g., a driver'slicense, a student ID, an employee ID, etc.), a document (e.g., a legaldocument, a notarized document, a passport, etc.), or a financialinstrument (e.g., a personal check, a cashier's check, etc.). The sensor204 may be any type of sensor such as, for example, an optical sensorand may be a component of an optical reader, camera, or video camera.The light source 206 may be any type of illumination source. In variousembodiments, the sensor 204 and the light source 206 may be componentsof the same device (e.g., a smartphone, POS scanner/reader, etc.). Invarious embodiments the light source 206 may be a light source within anenvironment of the physical credential 202 and/or may represent anambient lighting of the environment.

The physical credential 202 may include a secure feature or component208. The secure feature 208 may be any type of physical feature orcomponent. The secure feature 208 may be used to verify the authenticityof the physical credential 202. In various embodiments, the securefeature 208 may be positioned on a surface of the physical credential202. In various embodiments, the secure feature 208 may be a watermark,a stamp, a seal, or a hologram. In various embodiments, the securefeature 208 may be any applied feature (e.g., printed, laser marked oretched, etc.) such as any graphical or textual feature including apicture. In various embodiments, the secure feature 208 may be or mayinclude a covering of the physical credential 202 such as a layer ofplastic or laminate covering all or any portion of the physicalcredential 202.

In various embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the light source206 may provide an incident light ray or beam 210. A reflected light rayor beam 212 may be reflected off of the secure feature 208. Thereflected light ray 212 may be received by the sensor 204. The sensor204 may be coupled to a computing device 214. The computing device 214may be any of the computing devices described herein and may representan implementation of the computing device 101 depicted in FIG. 1. Thereflected light ray 212 detected by the sensor 204 may be used by thecomputing device 214 to determine one or more physical characteristicsof the secure feature 204 including, for example, an optical property ofthe secure feature 204 as described herein.

The light rays 210 and 212 may each be a single ray of light or may be acollection of a light rays. In general, the light rays 210 and 212represent at least a portion of the light incident on the secure feature208 and at least a portion of the light reflected from the securefeature 208, respectively. The light ray 212 may be considered to belight reflected from the secure feature 208 that is incident on and/ordetected by the sensor 204 which may vary between the first and secondorientations 280 and 282.

In various embodiments, the computing device 214 may be a smartphone(e.g., a smartphone that includes a camera/video camera and/or a lightsource). The smartphone may execute an application (app) that mayimplement the techniques and/or methods described herein for verifyingan authenticity of the physical credential 202. In various embodiments,the computing device 214 may be a 3D scanner or reader (e.g., a point ofsale (POS) scanner) that includes a camera/video camera and/or a lightsource. The 3D scanner may be capable of rotating around and/or aboutthe physical credential 202.

In various embodiments, the sensor 204 and/or the computing device 214may receive multiple images of the physical credential 202. The sensor204 and/or the computing device 214 may receive multiple images of thephysical credential 202 in various orientations. In various embodiments,the sensor 204 and/or the computing device 214 may receive at least afirst image of the physical credential 202 in the first orientation 280(e.g., as shown in FIG. 2A) and a second image of the physicalcredential 202 in the second orientation 282 (e.g., as shown in FIG.2B). In various embodiments, the sensor 204 and/or the computing device214 may receive a video sequence of the physical credential 202 in avariety of orientations, such that at least a first image of thephysical credential 202 in the first orientation 280 and a second imageof the physical credential 202 in the second orientation 282 arereceived. In various embodiments, more than one image of the physicalcredential 202 in a particular orientation may be received and used todetermine an authenticity of the physical credential 202.

An orientation of the physical credential 202 may be varied by movingthe physical credential 202 and/or by moving the sensor 204 and/or thelight source 206. By changing the orientation of the physical credential202—for example, from the first orientation 280 to the secondorientation—light incident and reflected on the physical credential 202(and/or the secure feature 208) may be varied. The light reflecteddifferently from the physical credential 202 (and/or the secure feature208) may be received by the sensor 204. As an example, the sensor 204and/or the light source 206 may be held stationary and the physicalcredential 202 may be moved—for example, rotated, turned, shifted, etc.(e.g., by an individual holding the physical credential). As anotherexample, the physical credential 202 may be held stationary and thesensor 204 and/or the light source 206 may be moved relative to thephysical credential 202.

In general, a first orientation of the physical credential 202corresponds to light reflecting from the physical credential 202 in afirst manner (e.g., as detected/received by a sensor) and a second,different orientation of the physical credential 202 corresponds tolight reflecting from the physical credential in a second, differentmanner (e.g., as detected/received by the sensor).

The computing device 214 may determine a type of the physical credential202 based on at least one received image of the physical credential 202.In various embodiments, the computing device 214 may determine the typeof the physical credential 202 based on one of the first received imageor the second received image of the physical credential 202. As anexample, the computing device 214 may determine that the physicalcredential 202 is a Virginia driver's license based on a received imageof the physical credential 202 in the first orientation 280. In variousembodiments, multiple images of the physical credential 202 may be usedto determine the type of the physical credential 202. In variousembodiments, the computing device 214 may determine the type of thephysical credential 202 based a determined shape or size of the physicalcredential 202 and/or based on any determined feature included on thephysical credential (e.g., any textual or graphical feature identifyingthe type of the physical credential 202).

Based on a determined type of the physical credential 202, the computingdevice 214 may determine one or more secure features associated with thephysical credential 202 such as, for example, the secure feature 208. Asan example, after determining that the physical credential 202 is aVirginia driver's license, the computing device 214 may determine thatthe physical credential 202 includes a secure feature 208 that is ahologram.

Light reflected off of the secure feature 208 (e.g., the reflected ray212) may be used to determine a physical property of the secure feature208 (and/or the physical credential 202) such as, for example and asdiscussed above, an optical characteristic of the secure feature 208. Invarious embodiments, the optical characteristic of the secure feature208 may be determined based on the reflected light in two or more imagesof the physical credential 202 and/or the secure feature 208 in two ormore orientations including, for example, a video sequence of thephysical credential 202 and/or the secure feature 208 in a variety oforientations. Based on the reflected light in two or more images, morereliable and more accurate determinations of one or more opticalcharacteristics of the secure feature 208 may be determined, therebyimproving detection of authentic physical credentials and inauthenticphysical credentials.

The optical characteristics of the secure feature 208 that may bedetermined may include, for example, color, refractive index,transparency, an intensity of reflected light, a scattering of light, ora movement of a glare reflected by the secure feature 208. As anexample, the secure feature 208 may be a laminate covering the physicalcredential 202. The light reflected off of the laminate secure feature208 (e.g., the reflect light ray 212) may be used to determine therefractive index of the laminate secure feature 208 and/or atransparency of the laminate secure feature 208.

As another example, a glare of the light reflected off of the laminatesecure feature 208 (e.g., the reflected light ray 212) may be detected.In various embodiments, a movement of the glare between the first andsecond images may be determined. In various embodiments, a change in asize of the glare between the first and second images may be determined.

As a further example, a color of light reflected off of the securefeature 202, a scattering of light reflected off of the secure feature208, and/or an intensity of light reflected off of the secure feature208—or a change in any of these optical properties—may be determined.

In various embodiments, any determined physical and/or opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature 208 may be compared to acorresponding expected physical and/or optical characteristic of thesecure feature 208. In various embodiments, based on the determined typeof the physical credential 202, known properties of the secure feature208 may be determined. Based on the known properties of the securefeature 208 and/or the first and second orientations 280 and 282 of thephysical credential 202, the computing device 214 may determine theexpected physical and/or optical characteristic of the secure feature208. In various embodiments, the computing device 214 may determine thefirst and second orientations 280 and 282 of the physical credential 202based on the first and second images of the physical credential 202. Invarious embodiments, the expected physical and/or optical characteristicof the secure feature 208 may also be determined based on a lightinglevel of the environment of the physical credential 202.

In general, the computing device 214 may use the changing lightreflected off of the secure feature 208—from different orientations ofthe secure feature 208—to measure and/or detect an opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature 208. The computing device 214 mayalso use known information regarding the secure feature 208 and thephysical credential 202 (e.g., the lighting of the physical credential202, the orientation of the physical credential 202, etc.). Thecomputing device 214 may then compare the determined opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature 208 to the expected opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature 208 to determine if the physicalcredential 202 is authentic.

For example, if the determined optical characteristic of the securefeature 208 matches the expected optical characteristic of the securefeature 208, then the computing device 214 may decide the physicalcredential 202 is authentic. If the determined optical characteristic ofthe secure feature 208 does not match the expected opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature 208, then the computing device 214may decide the physical credential 202 is inauthentic.

In various embodiments, the computing device may determine a first value(e.g., based on a determined metric) indicating the determined opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature 208 and may determine a secondvalue (e.g., based on the determined metric) indicating the expectedoptical characteristic of the secure feature 208. The first and secondvalues may be compared. If the first value is within a predeterminedrange of the second value, the computing device 214 may decide thephysical credential 202 is authentic. If the first value is outside ofthe predetermined range of the second value, the computing device 214may decide the physical credential 202 is inauthentic.

In various embodiments, one or more additional features of the physicalcredential 202 may be detected and/or measured to contribute to anydetermination whether the physical credential 202 is authentic orinauthentic. In various embodiments, a shape, size, and/or thickness ofthe physical credential 202 may be determined and may be used todetermine an authenticity of the physical credential. Any feature on thephysical credential 202—such as any graphical, textual, or pictorialfeatures—may also be used to determine an authenticity of the physicalcredential. In various embodiments, authentication may be based on apresence of such features and/or confirmation that any such featurematches an expected characteristic (e.g., if a watermark included on thephysical credential 202 matches an expected design).

In various embodiments, machine learning may be used to facilitateauthentication of a physical credential. In various embodiments,authentic and inauthentic physical credentials may be used to train asystem that may use machine learning to apply training data to detectionof authentic and inauthentic physical credentials.

In various embodiments, the computing device 214 may operate inconjunction with one or more computing devices including any local orremote computing device to perform any of the operations describedherein. In various embodiments, information regarding known propertiesof secure features may be stored by a remote computing device that thecomputing device 214 interacts with to obtain such information or anyinformation derived therefrom.

Having discussed an example arrangement for determining an authenticityof a physical credential, discussion will now turn to an illustrativemethod for determining an authenticity of a physical credential

FIG. 3 illustrates an example method 300 for determining a physicalcharacteristic of a physical credential (e.g., the physical credential202) in accordance with one or more aspects described herein. Method 300may be implemented based on the example arrangement depicted in FIGS. 2Aand 2B. Method 300 may be implemented by a suitable computing system, asdescribed herein. For example, method 300 may be implemented in anysuitable computing environment by a computing device and/or combinationof computing devices, such as computing devices 101, 105, 107, and 109of FIG. 1 and/or computing device 214 of FIGS. 2A and 2B. Method 300 maybe implemented in suitable program instructions, such as in software127, and may operate on data, such as data 129.

At step 302, a light level of an environment of the physical credentialmay be determined. The physical credential may be in any environmentsuch as inside any physical space or may be outside in an open ornon-enclosed area. The environment of the physical credential may beilluminated by any light source including natural light and/orartificial light. The light level of the environment may be determinedby ambient light of the environment. A sensor may be used to determinethe light level of the environment by, for example, determining anintensity of light received by a sensor.

At step 304, the determined light level of the environment of thephysical credential may be compared to a light level threshold. Thelight level threshold may represent a minimum intensity of light forreceiving images of the physical credential. If the determined lightlevel of the environment is lower than the light level threshold, thenat step 306 an action to increase the light level of the environment mayoccur. In various embodiments, at step 306, a supplemental light sourcemay be automatically activated that may be used to illuminate thephysical credential. For example, a light source on a computing device(e.g., a smartphone, a 3D reader/scanner) may be automatically turnedon. In various embodiments, at step 306, a request may be issued to auser to increase an illumination of the physical credential (e.g., arequest to hold the physical credential under a light, to turn a lighton, or to move the physical credential to a space with a higher lightlevel). As an example, a notification may be issued to the user that thedetermined light level is insufficient and that the light level of theenvironment is to be increased. If the determined light level of theenvironment is higher than the light level threshold, then the method300 may proceed to step 308.

At step 308, multiple images of the physical credential may be received.In various embodiments, a video sequence of the physical credential maybe received. The video sequence may include multiple images of thephysical credential. In various embodiments, two or more images of thephysical credential may be received. In various embodiments, eachreceived image may correspond to a different orientation of the physicalcredential. In various embodiments, multiple images of the physicalcredential in the same orientation may be received provided at least oneadditional image of the physical credential in a different orientationis received.

The orientation of the physical credential may be changed by moving thephysical credential (e.g., by a user holding the physical credentialmoving the physical credential or holding the physical credentialdifferently). The orientation of the physical credential may be relativeto a light source associated with the physical credential or a senor(e.g., an optical sensor) receiving the images of the physicalcredential such that moving one or more of the physical credential, thesensor, and/or the light source changes the relative orientation of thephysical credential.

The images of the physical credential may be received by any type ofsensor including a camera or video camera. In various embodiments, thesensor may be rotated or moved relative to the physical credential whenthe physical credential is held in a stationary position to receive themultiple images and/or video sequence of the physical credential.

In various embodiments, the received images and/or video sequence of thephysical credential may be stored in a memory of a computing device. Invarious embodiments, at least a first image of the physical credentialin a first orientation is received and a second image of the physicalcredential in a second orientation is received.

At step 310, a type of the physical credential may be determined. Thetype of the physical credential may be determined based on at least onereceived image of the physical credential. The type of the physicalcredential may be determined based on one or more physical features orcomponents of the physical credential including the shape and size ofthe physical credential or any feature applied to the physicalcredential (e.g., any textual, graphical, pictorial feature or markingsincluding watermarks, stamps, seals, etc.).

The physical credential may be any type of physical credential asdescribed herein including, for example, an ID card, a document, or afinancial instrument. A database or other memory (e.g., either remote orlocal to the physical credential) may be used to determine the type ofthe physical credential. In various embodiments, a local or remotedatabase or memory component may store information regarding variouscharacteristics and features of various physical credentials. The storedknown characteristics of various physical credentials may be consultedto determine a specific type of the physical credential in the at leastone received image of the physical credential.

At step 312, a secure feature or component of the physical credentialmay be determined (e.g., the secure feature 208). The secure feature maybe determined based on the determined type of the physical credential.The secure feature may be a physical feature of the physical credential.The secure feature may be any type of secure feature as described hereinincluding, for example, a hologram, a layer of plastic covering all or aportion of the physical credential, a stamp, a watermark, a graphicalimage, a textual image, or a photographic image.

A database or other memory (e.g., either remote or local to the physicalcredential) may be used to determine the secure feature of the physicalcredential. In various embodiments, a local or remote database or memorycomponent may store information regarding various secure features forvarious specific physical credentials. The stored known secure featuresof various physical credentials may be consulted to determine a specificsecure feature of the determined physical credential.

At step 314, a physical characteristic of the secure feature may bedetermined. The physical feature of the secure feature may be anyphysical feature including, for example, an optical characteristic ofthe secure feature. The optical characteristic of the secure feature maybe determined based on the light reflected from the secure feature inmultiple images of the physical credential in multiple orientations. Invarious embodiments, the optical characteristic of the secure featuremay be determined based on light reflected from the secure feature in afirst received image of the physical credential in a first orientationand a second received image of the physical credential in a second,different orientation.

In various embodiments, the light reflected from the secure featurechanges or varies between the first received image of the physicalcredential and the second received image of the physical credential. Theoptical characteristic of the secure feature may be more reliablydetermined based on the different manner the light reflects from thesecure feature in the first and second images (e.g., including based onthe change in the light reflected from the secure feature) in comparisonto determining an optical characteristic of the secure feature based ononly a single received image of the physical credential.

As described herein, the optical characteristic of the secure featuremay be any type of optical characteristic including, for example, acolor of the secure feature, a refractive index of the secure feature,an intensity of light reflected from the secure feature, a scattering oflight reflected by the secure feature, or a change in any of theseoptical characteristics between the first and second images of thephysical credential. In various embodiments, the optical characteristicmay include the behavior of a glare of light reflected from the securefeature such as a movement of the glare, a size of the glare, and/or achange in the size of the glare between the first and second images ofthe physical credential.

In various embodiments, one or more sensors may be used to detect one ormore features of the light reflected from the secure feature todetermine any of the optical characteristics of the secure featuredescribed herein. The features of the light then may be used (e.g.,processed by a computing device) to determine one or more opticalcharacteristics of the secure feature. Processing of any information ordata collected regarding the light reflected from the secure feature maybe conducted local to or remotely from the secure feature (e.g., by aremote computing device, a local computing device, or any combinationthereof).

At step 316, an expected physical characteristic of the secure featuremay be determined. The expected physical characteristic of the securefeature may be any physical feature including, for example, an opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature. The expected physicalcharacteristic of the secure feature may correspond to the determinedphysical characteristic of the secure feature determined at step 314.For example, if a detected movement of glare of light reflected from thesecure feature is determined at step 314, then at step 316, an expectedmovement of glare of light reflected from the secure feature may bedetermined.

The expected optical characteristic of the secure feature may bedetermined based on known physical properties or characteristics of thesecure feature. A database or other memory (e.g., either remote or localto the physical credential) may be used to determine the knownproperties of the secure feature. In various embodiments, a local orremote database or memory component may store information regardingvarious properties of specific secure features. The stored knownproperties of the secure features may be consulted to determine aspecific property of the secure feature. Example properties of thesecure feature may include a shape, a size, a color, a placement, or anorientation of the secure feature as well as information regardingmaterials forming the secure feature or any materials or coatingscovering the secure feature.

The expected optical characteristic of the secure feature may bedetermined based on the first orientation of the physical credential(e.g., corresponding to the first received image of the physicalcredential) and the second orientation of the physical credential (e.g.,corresponding to the second received image of the physical credential).The first and second orientations of the physical credential may bedetermined based on information provided by the first and secondreceived images of physical credential. For example, one or more imageprocessing techniques may be used to determine the first and secondorientations. In various embodiments, a sensor may detect an orientationof a device receiving the first and second images of the physicalcredential which may be used to determine the first and secondorientations of the physical credential.

The expected optical characteristic of the secure feature may also bebased on a determined light level of the environment of the credential.In various embodiments, a sensor may detect an illumination level of thephysical credential—for example, an intensity of light incident and/orreflected by the physical credential and/or an ambient lighting level ofthe environment of the physical credential.

At step 318, the physical characteristic of the secure featuredetermined at step 314 may be compared to the expected physicalcharacteristic of the secure feature determined at step 316. In variousembodiments, a first value indicative of the physical characteristic ofthe secure feature determined at step 314 may be determined and a secondvalue indicative of the expected physical characteristic of the securefeature determined at step 316 may be determined. The first value may becompared to the second value.

If the physical characteristic of the secure feature determined at step314 matches the expected physical characteristic of the secure featuredetermined at step 316, then at step 320, the physical credential may bedetermined to be authentic. In various embodiments, the physicalcharacteristic of the secure feature may be considered to match theexpected physical characteristic of the secure feature when the firstvalue is within a predetermined range of the second value. Thepredetermined range may be determined in any manner and may vary basedon the type of the physical credential and/or the type of the securefeature.

If the physical characteristic of the secure feature determined at step314 does not match the expected physical characteristic of the securefeature determined at step 316, then at step 322, the physicalcredential may be determined to be inauthentic. In various embodiments,the physical characteristic of the secure feature may be considered tonot match the expected physical characteristic of the secure featurewhen the first value is outside of the predetermined range of the secondvalue.

At step 322, additional actions may be taken when it is determined thatthe physical credential is inauthentic. In various embodiments, themethod 300 may be repeated in an attempt to authenticate the physicalcredential. Whether the method 300 is repeated may depend upon a numberof consecutive determinations that the physical credential isinauthentic based on the method 300. In various embodiments, at step322, a notification regarding the determination that the physicalcredential is inauthentic may be generated. The generated notificationmay be sent to one or more parties and/or one or more computing devices.In various embodiments, at step 322, use of the physical credential maybe deactivated and/or any authorization associated with the physicalcredential may be revoked by, for example, storing and/or sendinginformation indicating the same.

Some aspects described herein may provide benefits for determining anauthenticity of a physical credential in a more reliable and accuratemanner A physical characteristic of the physical credential, or anyportion thereof including a secure feature of the physical credential,may be more accurately and more reliably determined based on using twoor more images of the physical credential in two or more correspondingorientations. The more accurately determined physical characteristic maythen be used to determine authenticity, thereby improving thereliability of the results of any authentication determination. Aspectsdescribed herein are less susceptible to inauthentic photocopies ordigital representations of physical credentials. For example, a glare ofreflected light off of a photocopy will behave differently than off ofan authentic physical credential, and may be detected by the aspectsdescribed herein. The glare size and movement may be predictable basedon the aspects described herein and may be compared to glare from aphotocopy to determine the photocopy is an inauthentic physicalcredential.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the subject matter defined in the appended claims is notnecessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above.Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed asexample forms of implementing the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:receiving an image of a first credential; determining, based on atextual feature of the first credential included in the image, a type ofcredential corresponding to the first credential; determining a securefeature of the first credential based on the determined type ofcredential; determining, based on known physical characteristicscorresponding to the determined type of credential, an expected opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature of the first credential;determining, based on the image of the first credential, an actualoptical characteristic of the secure feature of the first credential;determining, based on whether the actual optical characteristic of thesecure feature of the first credential matches the expected opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature of the first credential, that thefirst credential is authentic; and providing an indication that thefirst credential is authentic.
 2. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 1, further comprising capturing the image of the first credentialusing a mobile device.
 3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,further comprising causing activation of a light source to illuminatethe first credential.
 4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,further comprising determining a light level of an environment of thefirst credential; comparing the determined light level to a light levelthreshold; and causing activation of a light source to illuminate thefirst credential when the determined light level is less than the lightlevel threshold.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, furthercomprising receiving the image of the first credential via anapplication executed on a mobile device.
 6. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 1, wherein the first credential comprises at least oneof: a financial card; or an identification (ID) card.
 7. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the secure featurecomprises a graphical feature.
 8. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 1, wherein the secure feature comprises text.
 9. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, where the secure featurecomprises a hologram.
 10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,wherein determining the actual optical characteristic of the securefeature comprises determining a color of the secure feature.
 11. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the determined actualoptical characteristic of the secure feature matches the expectedoptical characteristic of the secure feature when a value indicative ofthe determined actual optical characteristic is within a predeterminedrange of a value indicative of the expected optical characteristic. 12.A system comprising: a database configured to store known physicalcharacteristics of a secure feature of a credential; one or moreprocessors; and memory storing instructions that, when executed by theone or more processors, cause the system to: receive, via an applicationon a mobile device operated by a first user, an image of a firstcredential; determine, based on a textual feature of the firstcredential included in the image, a type of credential corresponding tothe first credential; determine a secure feature of the first credentialbased on the determined type of credential; determine, based on knownphysical characteristics corresponding to the determined type ofcredential, an expected optical characteristic of the secure feature ofthe first credential; determine, based on the image of the firstcredential, an actual optical characteristic of the secure feature ofthe first credential; determine, based on whether the actual opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature of the first credential matches theexpected optical characteristic of the secure feature of the firstcredential, that the first credential is authentic; and provide anindication that the first credential is authentic.
 13. The system ofclaim 12, wherein the instructions further cause the system to activatea light source of the mobile device to illuminate the first credential.14. The system of claim 12, wherein the first credential comprises afinancial card.
 15. The system of claim 12, wherein the secure featurecomprises a graphical feature.
 16. The system of claim 12, wherein thesecure feature comprises text.
 17. The system of claim 12, where thesecure feature comprises a hologram.
 18. The system of claim 12, whereinthe determined actual optical characteristic of the secure featurematches the expected optical characteristic of the secure feature when avalue indicative of the determined actual optical characteristic iswithin a predetermined range of a value indicative of the expectedoptical characteristic.
 19. The system of claim 12, wherein theinstructions further cause the system to receive the image of the firstcredential via an application executed on a mobile device.
 20. One ormore non-transitory media storing instructions that, when executed byone or more processors, cause the one or more processors to performsteps comprising: receiving an image of a first credential; determining,based on a textual feature of the first credential included in theimage, a type of credential corresponding to the first credential;determining a secure feature of the first credential based on thedetermined type of credential; determining, based on known physicalcharacteristics corresponding to the determined type of credential, anexpected optical characteristic of the secure feature of the firstcredential; determining, based on the image of the first credential, anactual optical characteristic of the secure feature of the firstcredential; determining, based on whether the actual opticalcharacteristic of the secure feature of the first credential matches theexpected optical characteristic of the secure feature of the firstcredential, that the first credential is authentic; and providing anindication that the first credential is authentic.